So you have a product - or a cause - to sell. You want to go out and meet THE PEOPLE, in all their big, loud, high-traffic glory, and recruit new customers or activists! The good news is, there is a foolproof method for getting results at a table... it's easy, it's fun, and it'll make you feel great! The bad news is, it's not the "sit still and stare at people" method you learned in your college frat.

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Steps

1

Come prepared. This means three things:

Have something attractive to draw people to your table. This could be a clever / shocking / attractive sign, a large picture, or big, bold text. Posters and tri-fold pieces of poster board are very common. This is actually the LEAST important part of coming prepared - but it really does help!

Know what you're going to say ahead of time. If you make up your "rap" (elevator speech) on the spot, people will be confused and they won't pay you much attention.

Have some way to record name and contact info for everyone who stops by! Your goal is to recruit, so make sure you're not taking anyone's word for it - you have to have a way to follow up! Lined paper will work, though a more standard signup sheet with lines is nice. ALWAYS HAVE PENS.

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2

Know why you're there: to get names on your page. Some people will tell you that simply going to a convention to "get the company name / cause out there" is enough. This is pure, unadulterated BS. If you spend (usually hundreds of) your organization's dollars for a space, and then sit there - you're wasting time and resources, not least your own.

3

Stand in front of the table. Do not sit. Do not stand behind and lean over. Stand in front, where you can stop people or follow them without feeling awkward, and where you can keep energized and on your toes. This is a friendly contact sport, and you should be limber. I like to dance (badly) to keep my energy and courage up. Do whatever works for you!

4

Chat with the vendors around you - and then sell them. They'll probably be sitting still and bored, and you'll brighten their day. While you're chatting, hit them up with your rap! I like to circle the room and sign up all the vendors first. They're sympathetic, they can't move, and it's great practice to get you started.

5

Have a grab line. You'll need a "grab line" to attract people so you can do your rap. Grab lines are just what they sound like - they capture your attention. "Here, check out an interest-free credit card!" and "Hey, I need your help to save mass transit in Detroit" are both good grab lines. They demand - instead of asking for - the person's attention, while doing it in a polite, upbeat way! A bad grab line would be your entire rap... or a timid, "hey, you got a second?" Never ask a question to which your customer can answer "no."

6

Say your grab line over and over, and don't stop until someone stops at your table. If it's possible to say it to every person, do it. If it's more natural to say it to every third person, do that. Just make sure there's no pause between one person and the next. Sound confident instead of desperate. Approach each new person as if they're your first, but don't stop. It's not awkward to approach two people in a row. It's awkward to get rejected, stop, and not be able to start again for ten minutes. Just remember it's a numbers game! Most people will say no or ignore you. Every tenth person will stop (even more will stop as you get more confident), and that one in ten people is what you need to hit your goal!

7

Set a numeric goal and make sure you hit it. Don't let yourself say "whatever I get is icing on the cake." That will leave you unmotivated and lethargic. Break it down into hours, as in "I'm here for five hours, I need a hundred people - that's twenty people per hour."

8

"Rap" for success. The rap is the most important factor in getting names on the page - not the "quality" of the crowd, not apathy, and not your personal charisma. Not even the quality of your product is as important! It all comes down to what you say; humans are very predictable creatures and they respond to predictable things. There is an easy formula for a persuasive speech - learn it, practice it and use it to succeed! It goes:

Introduction (who am I?)

Legitimization (what gives me a right to talk to you?)

Problem (what issue am I trying to solve by selling you this thing / getting you to sign up?)

Solution (what does the product or campaign accomplish? What are the goals?)

Action (what can you, the customer / activist, do RIGHT NOW to keep up with the product, buy today or advance the cause?)

9

Your Action should always include telling your person to put their name on the page. Again, you're telling, not asking. That doesn't mean being overbearing. It means being "assumptive" with your ask. As in, "I understand you don't have the cash to buy one of these / don't have the time to write a letter to your Congressman today. I can see you're interested / you support our cause though, which is awesome. Here, put your name down, and we'll put you on our Alert Network in case something happens in your neighborhood!"

10

Follow up quickly, or you may lose all your hard work! Whether you're selling products or getting someone active in a campaign, there is about a 48-hour window in which the person will remember you and remember that they signed up at your table. Tons of scientific studies say that once people have said yes once, they're much more likely to say yes again - meaning, if they remember you, they're very likely to come to your meeting or buy your product when you follow up. If you wait more than 48 hours, you lose this advantage.

11

Have fun! Tabling is conducting a crowd, building your business or campaign, and meeting new and interesting people. If you do it right, you'll feel powerful and energized - and you'll undoubtedly impress your boss!

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